SBI, Startale Launch JPYSC, Japan’s First Trust-Backed Yen Coin

SBI Group and Startale launched JPYSC on June 24, 2026. The token is pegged one-to-one to the Japanese yen and was issued by SBI Shinsei Trust Bank under a trust-bank model approved by Japan’s Financial Services Agency.

Reserves backing JPYSC are held in segregated trust accounts. Token holders receive statutory trust beneficiary rights, which legally separate their holdings from the issuer’s balance sheet under Japan’s Trust Act.

Regulators classified JPYSC as a Type III Electronic Payment Instrument under amendments to the Payment Services Act. That classification does not impose daily or remittance caps that apply to prepaid, Type II stablecoins.

The trust-bank framework permits reserves to include deposits and up to 50% in Japanese Government Bonds. That structure allows reserves to hold JGBs and creates a potential yield channel not available under earlier prepaid models.

Initial distribution of JPYSC will be handled through SBI VC Trade, the group’s crypto exchange. Wider on-chain circulation will depend on additional regulatory and tax guidance. Startale said its Strium L1 institutional blockchain is ready to serve as a settlement layer, and the project could support multiple chains including Soneium, a chain co-developed with Sony.

The JPYSC project advanced quickly. SBI and Startale signed a memorandum of understanding in December 2025. Startale unveiled Strium L1 in February 2026. In March 2026 Startale closed a $63 million Series A led by SBI, which invested $50 million, with Sony contributing $13 million. SBI VC Trade also distributed a dollar-pegged token from another issuer in March as a precursor to JPYSC distribution.

SBI and Startale are targeting institutional and enterprise clients. Intended use cases include corporate treasury management, large-value settlement, cross-border payments that reduce currency volatility, issuance and settlement of tokenized real-world assets, on-chain dividend distribution and payment rails for AI agents.

SBI Chairman Yoshitaka Kitao described the project as advancing “digital financial services that are fully integrated with traditional finance.” Startale CEO Sota Watanabe highlighted AI agent infrastructure and tokenized assets as important long-term applications.

A consortium of major Japanese banks, including MUFG, Mizuho and SMBC, is developing a separate yen stablecoin on the Progmat platform with a target for interbank deployment by March 2027.

Next steps for JPYSC include obtaining tax clarity and any additional regulatory approvals required for public-chain settlement and broader circulation beyond SBI VC Trade accounts.